


Sudoku Seizures

by NYWCgirl



Category: White Collar
Genre: Brain Damage, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Seizures, near-drowning
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-14
Updated: 2017-04-14
Packaged: 2018-10-18 18:34:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,246
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10622700
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NYWCgirl/pseuds/NYWCgirl
Summary: Peter takes Neal to the hospital after a seizure at the office.





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Sholio](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sholio/gifts).



> Written for the lightning round #49 at collar corner, prompt by Sholio, who asked for Peter & Neal – hospital visit.

“I can assure you mister Caffrey, we will find out what is causing the seizures.”

Neal nods tiredly. The seizures make him want to curl up in bed and never come out again. His head hurts, his muscles are sore and he is achy all over.

“Rest Neal, we will discuss this further after you had a nap.” The doctor pats him on the arm and Neal closes his eyes.

Peter gets up and exists the room with the doctor.

“What is wrong with him doctor? He seems fine one moment and the next he is convulsing on the floor.”

“I would like a word with you, can you follow me to my office? We can talk more in private.”

Peter follows the doctor into his office and has a seat.

“Can you tell me what you were doing before the seizure started? Neal was a bit vague and not sure if he remembered correct.”

“Of course. But I have to tell you that this was not the first time it happened, but it was the scariest. When I look back, he has had seizures before, but we didn´t recognize them as such.”

 

_Then…_

_Peter and Neal enter the office and Neal stops at his desk, while Peter walks up the stairs to his. They both work on some cases until Peter calls everybody to the conference room for a case they are working on. They are preparing to get an agent undercover and they need to discuss the last details. Neal was supposed to go undercover, but since he is still not cleared for field duty, another agent needed to take over._

_Peter asks every agent to tell him what they will be doing, where and when. When he gets to Neal, Neal walks up to the map and starts studying it, he explains what the agent needs to know, to get out of the building, when Peter hears someone smacking their lips, he looks behind him at the agents and can see it is not one of them. He turns back to Neal and realizes that Neal has stopped talking, he is staring at the map. Peter gives him a gentle shake and Neal seems to snap out of it._

“The lip smacking and absentness can be signs of a seizure.” the doctor explains.

“At the time, I didn´t really pay attention to it. It seemed innocent enough and Neal acted normal, but I should have known better and taken him to a doctor right there and then.”

“Agent Burke,…”

“Peter, please.”

“Peter, you couldn´t have known.”

“Yeah, but in light of Neal´s near drowning a couple of weeks before…”

“Yes, I read about that in his medical file, can you explained what happened?”

“I must tell you, this is not our daily work, we…” Peter gives a small huff.

“It is OK, Peter, I think you have a very dangerous job in keeping us all safe.”

 

_Then…_

_“It all happens so fast, Neal says the take down phrase, SWAT storms the building with Peter in pursuit. When they enter the room where they expect Neal to be, they find it empty. When they hear a splashing noise, they check it out, only to find their suspect trying to drown Neal in the swimming pool. And he seems to be having success. Neal is completely limp in the hands of his attacker._

_“FBI! LET GO OF HIM AND GET AWAY FROM HIM.” The SWAT members call out, pointing their guns at the suspect. He lets go, hands above his head and Neal sinks deeper. Peter is already in the water and dragging Neal to the side, where he is pulled up by two SWAT members._

_“He has a pulse.”_

_They start CPR immediately. Neal is pale and his lips are tinged blue and Peter fears the worst._

_“COME ON NEAL, DON´T DO THIS.”_

_After a minute that seemed like an eternity, Neal starts coughing and water pours out of his mouth._

_EMT´s enter the area and take over, making sure Neal is breathing before taking him to the ambulance._

 

“And what was the diagnoses? I guess he suffered from hypoxia?” doctor Polizzi asks.

“Yes, the ER doc told me that he suffered from a mild lack of oxygen to his body tissues and brain, but that he was expected to make a full recovery, because the oxygen deprivation was short.”

“And did he have other symptoms?”

“After he was released from the hospital, Neal complained of muscle twitching in his left leg when he walked. He also sometimes had spontaneous seizures in his left arm. His doctor prescribed anti-epileptic medication and the twitching was gone, so they thought they had the seizures under control. He came back to work, but he was not cleared for field duty.

“So that brings us to today, what happened today?”

Peter closes his eyes and sighs, giving himself a moment to pull himself together before he starts telling.

 

_Neal was concentrating on a floor plan of a building, because we needed to know which were possible escape routes._

_He was studying the floor plans when he asked me to keep my deviled ham sandwich away from him._

 

“I guess you weren´t eating at the time?” the doctor smiles.

“No, I wasn´t, so that was strange in itself.”

“It is quite common for people that are about the have a seizure to smell or taste something that isn´t there.” The doctor explains.

“Should have known that before.”

“Please continue.”

_He is pointing out one route after another when he suddenly pauses. It had happened before so again, I touch him, but he is completely rigid and staring into nothing. His leg starts twitching and I guide him down to the floor while calling out to get me medics, when he started convulsing._

“So what I conclude out of your stories is that the seizures start when he concentrates.”

Peter thinks about it. “No it is not as general as that, he concentrates when he works or studies files. Until now he only had them when he studies maps.”

The doctor nods.

“So do you know what is wrong with Neal?”

“Not exactly, but I have a hint where to look.”

 

* *  *

“Suit! Seriously? Neal has brain damage because of one of your operations. You didn´t keep him safe, this never happened when I looked out for him.”

Peter huffs and looks hurt.

“Mozzie, Peter saved my life, it wasn´t his fault Jefferson tried to drown me.”

Mozzie just glares at Peter.

“So now what? You are not able to read maps anymore?”

“Among things, yeah, I also can´t play Sudoku, and stuff like that. The doctor explained that I have a very intense ‘three-dimensional imagination’, that is why I am very good in brain-stimulating stuff…”

“When you were planning a heist.” Peter interrupts.

“The part of the brain that is used when thinking about things in 3D, happened to be the part that was most affected by the oxygen deprivation when I was under water. Overactivating this damaged part of my brain, is what causes the seizures.”

“So if you don´t use that part of your brain, you are fine.”

“Yeah, that is what the doctors tell me.”

“Fair enough.”

“Who knew you could be brain damaged into not being able to pull of cons?” Peter interjects.

“That really isn´t funny, suit, not funny at all.”

**Author's Note:**

> This is a condition that really can happen. The first documented case was a man who had seizures when he played Sudoku, hence the title.


End file.
